I was recently watching some of "Empire of Dreams" (which I really enjoy), and it got me to thinking about this topic again. It seems like, at least for the most part, that the original trilogy of movies is looked upon pretty fondly by fans and the general public. The prequel trilogy seems to vary wildly, with some really liking them - some hating them - and some liking parts here and there. A lot of that difference is often blamed on Lucas, and I was curious what everyone thinks "went wrong" from the OT to the PT. Was Lucas to enamored with all the digital goodies? Was it because he was directing (as opposed to handing that off to people like Kershner and Marquand in the OT)? Was it because of the writing/story - or the characters? Is it the fact that maybe in the OT years, he wasn't surrounded by as many "yes men" as he possibly is these days? Anyways, lots of question marks there, but I was curious what you guys think changed between the OT and PT days with Lucas? Although it may have just been due to the lack of an "internet community", it seems like Lucas was pretty well thought of in the 70s/80s - even early 90s, but that opinions seems to have mostly changed these days.

The original trilogy was epic, following the traditional hero arc. The story was fairly basic, the characters were standard archetypes. With this basic framework, the characters were able to really connect with the audience and capture their imagination.

The prequels are a mess about politics and corruption. The focus on Vader, from annoying brat to whiny teen, alienated the audience. The plot was confusing and dull. And he cheapened the OT by finding ways to toss in popular characters in critical roles in ways that didn't make sense. If was just poorly executed from start to finish. I think the people who "love" it just enjoy the visceral thrill of the lightsaber battles, which were excellent. But almost everything else is flat.

I think his big problem is that after he created the coolest thing in the history of mankind, the OT movies, his ego got so big he thinks everything that comes out of his mind is also that great and he won't take "no" or "maybe you should do that differently" because to him if it is from him it must be the best.

I also believe he and Hasbro owe me a lot of money.

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I'm daring to do the impossible: Not hating Hasbro for everything they do.

I personally think he deserves more credit than blame. We wouldn't be posting a star wars forum or collecting any of this stuff if not for George. Regardless of whatever else he does wrong, you can't take that away from him. I think what he successfully did was to hit on a great story premise with state-of-the-art effects for its time. Beyond that, I think a lot of the credit belongs to concept designers and other contributors to both the films and the EU universe.

I was looking through the "25 movies we want on blu ray" feature at IGN, where I first started thinking about people's opinion of Lucas again. Although the prequel trilogy is listed at #3 on their most wanted list, the commentary within really seems scathing towards Lucas - and I was wondering if that is what the general fanbase truly thinks of the man at this point. Anyways, just ran across it again this morning and thought I'd pass it along.

It's apparently fashionable to hate on Lucas like people hate on the Yankees or the Cowboys. He's America to the fanboy's al Queda, the Jerry to their Tom, Road Runner to their Coyote. Without him, none of them would exist, but they haven't figured that out yet. He gives purpose to their lives but they're loathe to admit it.

The fans, more than anything Lucas (or, since this is a collecting site, Hasbro or any other license holder) has done, ruin these films and this hobby for me. I love the SW films and many of the toys and collectibles out there, but spend 20 minutes on, specifically, the otheR Site's forums and not only does it inspire homicidal rage, but also sours my opinion of this entire universe.

E...

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"I sell the drugs that keep you people from seeing dragons at night." - Gus "Psych"

The fans, more than anything Lucas (or, since this is a collecting site, Hasbro or any other license holder) has done, ruin these films and this hobby for me. I love the SW films and many of the toys and collectibles out there, but spend 20 minutes on, specifically, the otheR Site's forums and not only does it inspire homicidal rage, but also sours my opinion of this entire universe.

Yeah, I do think there's a lot of truth to that as well. There is a bit of a "mob mentality" with the internet, and it seems that fanbases in general (not just Star Wars) tend to complain about every little detail of their favorite franchise (whether its comics, SW, Joe/Transformers, etc.) Heck, I've even seen people that came out of one or more of the prequel movies excited, only to continually see (either online or in general media) people "hating" on the same movies - and eventually come around to agreeing with the masses.

That being said, obviously some of Lucas' decision making might seem flawed with the prequels, and I can see where some complaints come from. At the same time, I don't really understand the "hate" for Lucas, like he's purposely trying to piss us off. Just like with the general population, I think his contributions to the original trilogy stories is starting to get overlooked. He may not have the touch he once did, or has too many "yes men" around him now to tell him differently, but those Original movies are magic to me and many others. I like the prequel movies for the most part, they just "feel" totally different to me than the Star Wars I knew before. That being said though, I don't know that anything could have lived up to the OT - short of having sequels with that same cast shortly after Jedi was released or something (and even then it probably wouldn't be the same). One thing I've noticed in some reviews/opinion pieces over the past few years (like the IGN one I posted above) seem to lump Revenge of the Sith in with the other prequels as being "horrible". I thought that ROTS was fairly well accepted, even among the fan community.

I think that anyone who expected the Prequels to be as good as the originals is diminishing how awesome the originals are and how difficult it is to make something that awesome.

I'm not going to hate on Lucas. I enjoy the prequels because they are Star Wars and they still brought more story to light, but I think some of there flaws weren't just because it's difficult to have the magic of the originals. A lot of it was because George has too many yes man and a gigantic ego.

There are certain parts of the prequels where I literally cringe because the dialouge is so bad. And I don't think all the people in on making this movie missed it. I think George got an idea in his head and that is what he was going to do no matter what. So if people want to criticize him for that they can. He isn't immune just because he made the originals so good.

All in all, of course, we all need to be very thankful to George for bringing so much enjoyment into our lives, Ep 1-6 and everything else that goes along with it. The fact we are so critical about it shows how much we love it.

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I'm daring to do the impossible: Not hating Hasbro for everything they do.

There are certain parts of the prequels where I literally cringe because the dialouge is so bad. And I don't think all the people in on making this movie missed it. I think George got an idea in his head and that is what he was going to do no matter what. So if people want to criticize him for that they can. He isn't immune just because he made the originals so good.

I've noticed that too. I've been rewatching the prequels lately when they have been on Spike TV, and there are some moments that are really cringe-worthy. There are a lot of parts of each movie that I enjoy a lot, and I find few faults with ROTS in particular, but certain portions of dialogue (in AOTC in particular for me) bother me every time.